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Working Paper 39: Behavioural drivers of corruption facilitating illegal wildlife trade – Problem analysis and state of the field review
This Problem Analysis is a review of the efficacy and opportunities for using social norm and behaviour change (SNBC) approaches to combat illegal wildlife trade (IWT) and other natural resource-related corruption.
Behavioural science is a rich and expansive field that has received prominent coverage in recent years for the promise it offers as a foundational yet underutilised approach to achieving biodiversity conservation. Extensive literature shows how SNBC initiatives can help combat diverse corruption problems, although for those related to natural resource management the evidence for doing so is sparse.
This report synthesises the available information and suggests the next steps to redress this current lack of evidence. It seeks to:
- Understand what SNBC approaches might or might not work in fighting corruption.
- Identify entry points for designing SNBC interventions that can effectively reduce corruption related to IWT.
About and acknowledgements
This Analysis has been produced in association with the Targeting Natural Resource Corruption (TNRC) project. The TNRC project is working to improve biodiversity outcomes by helping practitioners to address the threats posed by corruption to wildlife, fisheries and forests. TNRC harnesses existing knowledge, generates new evidence, and supports innovative policy and practice for more effective anti-corruption programming. Learn more at tnrcproject.org.
This publication is made possible by the generous support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contents are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID, the United States Government, or individual TNRC consortium members.
The publication is part of the Basel Institute on Governance Working Paper Series, ISSN: 2624-9650. It is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).
Suggested citation: Baez Camargo, Claudia, and Gayle Burgess. 2022. “Behavioural drivers of corruption facilitating illegal wildlife trade: Problem analysis and state of the field review.” Working Paper 39, Basel Institute on Governance. Available at: https://baselgovernance.org/publications/wp-39
Anticorruption Guidance for Partners of State-Owned Enterprises
Drawing on broad stakeholder consultations, corruption case analysis and reviews of existing best practices, this guidance proposes concrete measures that companies should adopt to reduce corruption risks in their work with state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in the oil, gas and mining industries. It also recommends measures SOEs can take to strengthen their anticorruption safeguards.
The guidance for private-sector companies has five parts:
- Conducting due diligence on SOEs
- Avoiding high-risk agents
- Responding to political exposure
- Safeguarding payments
- Protecting joint ventures from corruption
The final section identifies corresponding recommendations for SOEs in each of these five areas.
By adopting stronger safeguards against corruption, international companies and SOEs can avoid costly scandals that hamper their performance and damage their reputations. These reforms would also help protect the interests of resource-producing countries. Past cases clearly show the kinds of economic, social and political damage corruption can cause.
The Natural Resource Governance Institute developed this industry-tailored guidance with a multi-stakeholder approach including affected companies, civil society and others. The Basel Institute was pleased to contribute to the process through its Collective Action team.
Corrupting the Environment: insights on corruption, the environment and illicit trade
This collection of insights on corruption, the environment and illicit trade emerges from the monthly Corrupting the Environment webinar series between December 2020 and August 2021.
A joint initiative of the Basel Institute on Governance and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the series brought together leading voices from the public and private sectors, academia and civil society. In lively panel discussions, they explored critical trends and shared recommendations for addressing the corruption that is destroying our planet and people’s opportunities for sustainable development.
The publications below are adapted from summaries published on the Basel Institute following each event.
